This week is turning into a much tougher slog than I had imagined. But onward we go…

Thy Word have I hid in mine heart that I might not sin against Thee…and as a bonus I also got this cool frisbee from the AWANA store!

Scripture memorization is a key part of a young fundamentalist’s education. Whether it’s in a formal classroom setting, as part of a Sunday School program, or at the dinner table, young fundamentalists are trained to regurgitate everything from short Proverbs to entire passages. That’s good.

Even as a child grows up and leaves fundamentalism he still carries with him this treasure of knowledge. The ability to turn ones thoughts to a particular verse or passage and have it instantly within reach with all its wisdom and 1611 thunder is a grand thing to be sure. Certainly, the explanation of the passages may not always have been quite right and some great passages (predestination, anyone?) never made it into a memory verse list. Nonetheless, the emphasis on having the Scriptures as a constant companion in your heart and mind is an aid and a comfort even while the former fundy learns to appreciate them with a newly opened and enlightened understanding.

Fundamentalists do take knowing the Scriptures seriously even if genuinely interpreting them and applying them don’t always exactly follow. I can only hope that the Spirit illumines more and more of them to a truer understanding of the words they already hold in their minds.